President Droupadi Murmu honoured state secretaries and district collectors with the prestigious Bhoomi Samman awards during a ceremony held in New Delhi on Tuesday. The awards were presented to nine state secretaries and 68 district collectors in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the successful implementation of the Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP).
Commending the achievers who met their targets under the DILRMP, President Murmu emphasised the significance of digitising land records for rural development. “Digitization increases transparency. This mission of digitising land records will have a positive impact on rural development,” she said.
The primary objective of the Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme is to establish a unified land information management system across the nation by leveraging the commonalities in land records management in different states. The awards were conferred upon the recipients for achieving saturation of the core components of the DILRMP in their respective regions.
President Murmu drew attention to the challenges faced by many rural landowners who possess ancestral land records but encounter difficulties in registering them due to lack of information, resources, or disputes. She urged the government to address such cases and ensure smoother processes.
Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, Kapil Moreshwar Patil, highlighted how the digitization of land records has facilitated access to loans against properties, which was not easily available previously.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Rural Development, Faggan Singh Kulaste, revealed that over 94% of land records have already been digitised, and the remaining records are expected to be completed before the deadline of March 31, 2024. The Rural Development Ministry predicts that the digitization of land records and registrations will significantly reduce the backlog of court cases related to land disputes, thereby preventing project delays and mitigating economic losses incurred due to prolonged litigation.
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